Padma Lakshmi's New M.A.C. Collection Has a Red Lipstick for Every Skin Tone

Padma Lakshmi: actress, supermodel, host of Top Chef, cookbook author, an ACLU ambassador for immigration and women’s rights, and now... co-creator of a capsule collection with M.A.C. Like the beauty company's other collaborations, the joy of this one is that we know we're getting the pigments and quality we love from M.A.C., but we get to see our favorite celebrities put their distinctive spin on every element. While the collection itself won't be available until March 15th, we got the scoop on the collection from Lakshmi herself.

Lakshmi's investment in the collection is palpable, and to hear her talk about it is to catch some of her infectious enthusiasm for makeup in general (which, well, we already share), and, of course, her new creations. She was heavily involved in the entire process — and in fact, that instantly eye-catching gilded packaging came right from (of all places!) her kitchen.

"I wanted to do something totally different and I also wanted it to feel like a splurge," Lakshmi tells Allure. "I want it to feel luxurious, and that pattern on the compact was directly ripped off from my Turkish plates, which are handspun and have gold leaf on the back. I always thought that the design was beautiful, and the M.A.C. team actually came to my house for one of the meetings, and they were just looking around at all my bric-a-brac and they loved it too."

Beyond the exterior, Padma's knowledge of makeup is obvious: "My interest in makeup long preceded the age where I even had my first makeup artist. I think part of it is because if you're a woman of color, you don't find those shades. You just become very creative in mixing them yourself. My mom will tell you the same story. I think I also just had a propensity for mixing colors. Mixing colors is not unlike mixing spices or cooking. I also think that there's a lot of self-adornment in the rituals of Indian culture," she explains. So, in her own collection, she sought to cater specifically to women with underserved medium skin tones.

Still, she's quick to give credit to M.A.C., too, which she says has long been one of her go-to brands thanks to their diverse offerings. "I think of the beauty companies that exist over the last couple of decades, and M.A.C. has probably been the best at providing colors that are super saturated and work on a variety of pigments," she says.

Though there are six lipsticks in the collection, it's hard to miss the emphasis on the eyes, which Lakshmi traces back to her Indian heritage — which heavily influenced this collaboration. "In many conservative, Middle Eastern Muslim countries, all you see are the women's eyes," she says, showing the thought that went into the collection. "It's a worldwide campaign," she says, explaining that "It'll be in stores in India, in Saudi Arabia. It was very important that I made sure I think globally, and that these colors work for everyone."

Regardless of skin tone, though, there's something for everyone — I'm pale as a ghost and would like each of the dual-ended eyeliners, thank you very much.

While we're on the topic of eyes, there are three dual-ended Powerpoint Eye Pencils ($18.50 each) for the woman who needs options (so, all of us). Iced Heather/Kerala Sun contains a silver frosty shade and a pure gold for a metallic eye, Indian Ink/Mossy Green has your pure black and a deep green, and finally, Bordeauxline/Molé Brown features deep plum and cool brown. "I don't know any woman who doesn't want their makeup bag to be as small as possible," Lakshmi adds. "I thought, For most women, it takes a long time to wear down your eyeliner, even if you wear it every single day. You don't need the long pencil of one color, so I made them dual ended."

Finally, for a touch of color, use the Large Contour Brush ($25) to glide the Powder Blush Duo ($33 each, and housed in the same ornately decorated palette as the eye quads) across your cheekbones. There are two options, Moon & Shine — a frosty highlight with a matte, warm, beige and Melon Pink, which couples a gilded peachy-pink hue that features a satin finish, with a mid-tone frosty orange.